HOMOSEXUALITY IN AFRICA
- Homosexuality is outlawed in 38 African nations, and legal (or unmentioned in the statute book) in at least 13
- In Mauritania, Sudan and northern Nigerian states, homosexuality may be punished by death
- In Uganda, offenders may receive life imprisonment, and in countries including Gambia, Kenya, and Tanzania, homosexuality is punishable by up to 14 years in jail
- South Africa is the only country in the world which guarantees gay and lesbian rights in the constitution - but discrimination remains in practice
- In Zimbabwe, even same-sex displays of affection may be a criminal offence
Sources: IGLA and Behind the Mask
Friday, February 29, 2008
Coalition of African Lesbians Pt 2
As a follow-up to yesterday's article BBC ran this one entitled Africa's lesbians demand change which looks at the conference which was held. A sampling of the article is below:
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Coalition of African Lesbians
Came across this article and am glad that African lesbians are able to get together to discuss the homophobia and the prejudice that they face constantly. I salute these women for coming out and saying yes we are African and yes we are lesbians. Here's an extract:
From Pink News: African lesbian conference demands equal rights. Lesbians from across Africa have held a conference in Mozambique to highlight the homophobia and prejudice they face across the continent. Most nations in Africa criminalise same-sex relationships and in some countries gay people can be put to death.Check out the whole article and read more on what's going on with our African sisters who are trying to make a difference. I unfortunately was unable to find a website for CAL and will continue to look for it.
... "Our main goal is that lesbian and homosexuality can no longer be seen as a criminal offence," the group's director and conference spokeswoman Fikile Vilakazi told Reuters.
U People weekly Vlog
U People is back yet again, and we love us some Hanifah and Olive. They are reminiscing about when they were young 'uns. It's just interesting to hear what comes out of their mouths. Did I mention that they had guests.
Monday, February 25, 2008
The Closet and Self Preservation
Yet again I am here to ramble. I am a regular reader of a blog called lezkeepitreal and and the blogger not too long ago posted and article entitled The Price of Being Different.The article looks at a hate crime that took place in Oxnard, Calif where a young boy was shot in cold blood for being who he was. Below is an extract of the article
The question that always stands out in my mind is why did I not come to her defense when I was beginning to realize that I was definitely not straight. Simple and most complicated answer is fear. As long as I stuck to my tomboyish ways, I could get away with a lot. I kept my popularity at school and could continue to sit on several distinguished teams that I was a part of. Mind you, I was at one of the top Catholic schools so to be on these teams meant you had sweated your way onto the team and would do whatever had to be done to stay on it. I got to dress as I pleased even going so far as to wear the school shoes that were reserved for our male counterparts ( a small thing you might think, but I received numerous citations for that ).
I understood that anything that was not status quo would not be acceptable. I wanted to graduate with a reputation that was fairly intact. I also didn't think I could handle the taunting. In addition most of my friends' parents were known to mine so anything that happened to one of us would ultimately make the rounds. Case in point, the afore mentioned girl. My mother asked me about the incident and I pled ignorance as this was not a conversation that I was having with my mother. (My mother and I have since had round about conversations on homosexuality even though I have not come out and said yes I am actually a lesbian. More of that in a later post).
Now having rambled endlessly, I have to say all this is not to excuse myself for not doing the right thing and defending her or at least warning her of the pranks, but to instead say that self-preservation will oft times takes precedence over what is for the greater good. Would I change how I did things in the past no, but I am trying to do what I can to start conversations about something that is considered taboo in the my culture. Hopefully by discussing it, more acceptance can be gained and more people will be able to live openly.
Teach Tolerance!
Ty
From Time.com ~ Lawrence King, an eighth grader who identified as gay and wore makeup and nail polish, was 15 when he was declared brain dead on Feb. 13.
The day befor
e, he had been shot in the head in an Oxnard, Calif., classroom full of students. Police have charged a sweet-faced boy called Brandon McInerney, 14, with first-degree murder and with a hate crime. According to the Los Angeles Times and KTLA, McInerney and some other boys accosted King about his sexuality on Feb. 11. Students apparently often taunted King, who didn’t even have a safe home to return to after school: he was living in a shelter for abused and troubled children.
The article got me thinking of my own high school days. I recall there was a student who was bisexual. I attended a boarding school so as can be expected news not only traveled fast but was also constantly distorted. The student in question was often taunted and accused of being evil simply because she got intimate with one of the other students. Students also pulled some pretty mean stunts and it's a wonder that she not only stuck out the school year, but also graduated with me at the time. She understood who she was and that is something that I can now stand back and admire.
The question that always stands out in my mind is why did I not come to her defense when I was beginning to realize that I was definitely not straight. Simple and most complicated answer is fear. As long as I stuck to my tomboyish ways, I could get away with a lot. I kept my popularity at school and could continue to sit on several distinguished teams that I was a part of. Mind you, I was at one of the top Catholic schools so to be on these teams meant you had sweated your way onto the team and would do whatever had to be done to stay on it. I got to dress as I pleased even going so far as to wear the school shoes that were reserved for our male counterparts ( a small thing you might think, but I received numerous citations for that ).
I understood that anything that was not status quo would not be acceptable. I wanted to graduate with a reputation that was fairly intact. I also didn't think I could handle the taunting. In addition most of my friends' parents were known to mine so anything that happened to one of us would ultimately make the rounds. Case in point, the afore mentioned girl. My mother asked me about the incident and I pled ignorance as this was not a conversation that I was having with my mother. (My mother and I have since had round about conversations on homosexuality even though I have not come out and said yes I am actually a lesbian. More of that in a later post).
Now having rambled endlessly, I have to say all this is not to excuse myself for not doing the right thing and defending her or at least warning her of the pranks, but to instead say that self-preservation will oft times takes precedence over what is for the greater good. Would I change how I did things in the past no, but I am trying to do what I can to start conversations about something that is considered taboo in the my culture. Hopefully by discussing it, more acceptance can be gained and more people will be able to live openly.
Teach Tolerance!
Ty
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Jenn & Dee's VLog & my take on their word of the week
Here's their weekly installment. hilarious as always. If you enjoy it go on over to Afterellen.com and leave then some feedback. Their word for the day was Fish.
Now that got me to thinking. Do you remember the words that were used to refer to the people that your friends were seeing. As I recall ... I'm southern African in case you were wondering ... I remember my mates referring to their girlfriends as the fish that they had caught. Makes you think about fishing expeditions doesn't it? You hit the club and cast that lure into the masses and see which fish nibbles. From then on it's a matter of reeling her in, and much like fishing, you can't pull one in in one shot, u gotta pull then let go a lil then reel in some more then let the fish out again. Some of my mates were such expert fishermen, that the women began to avoid then.
This in my opinion was only half a step up from the Neanderthal method, of club the woman and take her home. This is where I heard some of the cheesiest line that I swore I would never use as a self respecting woman. The fact that they worked at the time still baffles me. I'm glad that we are slowly returning to hello being the pick-up line of choice.
Now that got me to thinking. Do you remember the words that were used to refer to the people that your friends were seeing. As I recall ... I'm southern African in case you were wondering ... I remember my mates referring to their girlfriends as the fish that they had caught. Makes you think about fishing expeditions doesn't it? You hit the club and cast that lure into the masses and see which fish nibbles. From then on it's a matter of reeling her in, and much like fishing, you can't pull one in in one shot, u gotta pull then let go a lil then reel in some more then let the fish out again. Some of my mates were such expert fishermen, that the women began to avoid then.
This in my opinion was only half a step up from the Neanderthal method, of club the woman and take her home. This is where I heard some of the cheesiest line that I swore I would never use as a self respecting woman. The fact that they worked at the time still baffles me. I'm glad that we are slowly returning to hello being the pick-up line of choice.
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Gay Africans Online
Came across this article and it focuses on gay africans and arabs coming out online. The writer looked at several blogs so I thought it's something to check out.
Quoted from Andrew Heavens, Gay Africans, Arabs come out online, http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080219.wgtgayblog0219/BNStory/Technology/homeBeyond the blogging scene, the Internet's chat rooms and community sites have also become one of the safest ways for gay Africans and Arabs to meet, away from the gaze of a hostile society.
“That is what I did at first, I mean, I looked around for others until I found others,” said Gug, the writer behind the blog GayUganda.
“Oh yes, I do love the Internet, and I guess it is a tool that has made us gay Ugandans and Africans get out of our villages and realize that the parish priest's homophobia is not universal opinion. Surprise, surprise!”
The writings on the wall
Second post is entitled 'The writings on the wall' and you will have to forgive the use of stereotypes but they are useful in getting the point across. When people who've know me for many years find out that I'm into women, they act all surprised so I thought why not point out the obvious...
How did you miss the the writings on the wall?
Teach Tolerance!
Ty
How did you miss the the writings on the wall?
- Flannel Shirts way back when though I've since gotten rid of them.
- Short hair way back when though I've since upgraded
- Baggy pants
- From age 9 I bought my clothes out of the boys section
- Skirts? when did you last see me in one and I know you've got to think hard about this one.
- The expression don't hold your breath lest you suffocate while waiting for me to get a man was not told in jest.
Teach Tolerance!
Ty
Insyte Production's Lovers & Friends Show
There's a web show out there called Lovers & Friends Show that I have got to give a shout out to. I have enjoyed their first 2 installments and the production is great. The cast is primarily people of color so you know I had to include it here. If you get a chance check it out. By the way it is produced by Insyte Productions.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Aptly named
Hey all, welcome to TQA, I decided to rename the blog. We have portions of the queer community covered in different blogs but I haven't run into any that cover the African community so I'm going to put in my 5 cents worth every now and then.
I'm going to be giving out information on books to read, places to visit, resources that are out there ... if I can find it, I will post it.
I'm also going to be including vlogs by African Americans to give the blog some dynamic content.
Holla!
Ty
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
African and Queer
I have been giving this some thought for a while. There are several sites out there that focus on Africa and the queer communities there. It is an issue that is near and dear to my heart so I might start blogging on that. As I research I come across more and more information that I think the queer community in sub-Saharan Africa might be interested in. We'll see how it goes so be on the look-out for that
Monday, February 18, 2008
T:SCC Jenn & Dee Vlog
One of my favorite vlogs. Saturday just can't come soon enough for me to see a new episode. As always hilarious and don't forget that gay slang 101 section towards the end! For more of their vlogs, got to AfterEllen.com or use the blogroll link on the right for T:SCC.
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